Gig Review: LCD Soundsystem + Hot Chip (London)

Gig Reviews and Photos Sun, 19 Dec 2010 Written by Will Nixon
LDC Soundsystem's James Murphy (photo: supplied)

Our man in London, Will Nixon, went along to see Hot Chip and LCD Soundsystem  at the Alexandra Palace, London, 10 November 2010. Not one for speedy turnarounds, is he?

Last month, London’s iconic Alexandra Palace played host to the stellar double-bill of Hot Chip and LCD Soundsystem.

The queue for the venue was massive, and we were relieved to escape the unseasonably cold weather to get in just in time for the start of Hot Chip’s opening tune. The “Ally Pally” is a big venue, and the gig was held in the vast ballroom which gives the impression of being outdoors but with better sound (and in this case, protection from the cold!).

Hot Chip

Not surprisingly, Hot Chip played a very similar setlist to what I saw at Bestival in September, including all their main hits and closing with the crowd favourite Ready for the Floor. For such complex, precise music, it’s impressive how well Hot Chip bring it to the stage, with particular highlights being the impossible-not-to-dance-to Over And Over and Hold On.

LCD Soundsystem

Judging by the number of extra people who seemed to appear from nowhere during the intermission, it was clear that LCD Soundsystem was the main attraction of the evening. James Murphy and his band arrived about half an hour late and started slowly with Dance Yrself Clean, but dived straight into Drunk Girls, which I have to say is a lot better live than through a stereo.

Front-man Murphy claimed to have lost his voice in Denmark the week before and was only able to sing with a heavy dose of steroids. This may explain the shorter-than-expected set, but they still managed to fit in almost all the hits into a cracking performance, and if Murphy was having problems with his voice he did a great job of hiding it.

I was impressed at how well the band melded the live and electronic elements of Murphy’s music together on the stage; while there were a lot of programmed backing tracks, the guitarist and drummer (who had prime position next to Murphy at the front of the stage) definitely enriched the sound and gave the live act a much rockier feel than LCD Soundsystem’s recordings. Stand-out track was the 'Sound Of Silver' classic All My Friends, while the main set’s closing trio of the insanely danceable Tribulations, Movement and Yeah reduced the crowd into a sweaty, undulating mass that needed the calming encore of Someone Great and Home to convince them to leave at the end of the show.

Double Bills

“The problem with these double-bills,” said an insightful passerby as walked into the chilly night, “is that you never get enough of either band. Or then again, maybe you do.” Not the most profound statement - but he had a point.

Due to (I assume) licensing requirements that demanded an 11pm shutdown, not to mention James Murphy’s sore throat, both bands played somewhat truncated sets, so die-hard fans who’d come to see one band in particular may have found reason to be disappointed. On the other hand, we got to see quality performances from two of the most danceable and forward-thinking big-name bands out there, and still managed to catch the tube home. Not bad for a Wednesday night.

You can check out the Hot Chip setlist from the night here.

You can check out the LCD Soundsystem setlist from the night here.

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM 'DRUNK GIRLS' - CO-DIRECTED BY SPIKE JONZE